Catalog 12-13.indd - McMurry University

Course Descriptions - Undergraduateteenth and eighteenth centuries. Political, economic, technological,cultural, and religious aspects of the British North Americancolonies, including their fi ght for independence and thequest for a national government. (Fall odd years)HIST 3351The Early American Republic, 1787-1848 (3-0) Prerequisites:6 hrs of lower-level history or permission of instructor. TheUnited States from the adoption of the Constitution of 1787through the Mexican War. Political institutions and practices,economic growth, reform movements, and westward expansionare emphasized. (Spring even years)HIST 3352Civil War and Reconstruction (3-0) Prerequisites: Six hoursof lower-level history or permission of instructor. A study of thesocial, economic, and political causes of the Civil War, theevents leading to the outbreak of hostilities, and the war itself.The study also includes an analysis of the attempts to reunitethe nation, to reconstruct the South, and to integrate the freedmeninto society. (Fall odd years)HIST 3354Contemporary United States (3-0) Prerequisites: Six hoursof lower-level history or permission of instructor. Recent developmentsin American society, investigating the unity and diversityof American life in its cultural, political, economic, andintellectual aspects in the second half of the 20 th century.(Fall even years)HIST 3358Greece and Rome: An Introduction to the Classical World(3-0) Prerequisites: Six hours of lower-level history or permissionof the instructor. A study of the origins, development, anddecline of ancient Greece and Rome, including Hellenism,Christianity, and the German migrations. Incorporates the developmentof the Western cultural tradition with an emphasison classical literature, philosophy, art, and architecture.(Fall odd years)HIST 3359The Middle Ages: The Crucible of Western Civilization(3-0) Prerequisites: Six hours of lower-level history or permissionof the instructor. Europe from the time of Constantineuntil the Renaissance. The Middle Ages was a dynamic erawhen modern Europe was formed by the fusion of Greco-Roman culture, German tribal life, and the universal Christianchurch, tempered by the storm of Islam. The importance of theMedieval period to Western civilization will be emphasized bysurveying the history, arts, literature, and culture of the period.(Spring even years)HIST 3360Renaissance and Reformation (3-0) Prerequisites: Sixhours of lower-level history or permission of instructor. Originsof Renaissance humanism, commercial and scientific revolutions,national states. Protestant and Catholic Reformations;wars of religion. European overseas exploration and conquest.(Spring odd years)HIST 3363Nineteenth Century Europe (3-0) Prerequisites: Six hoursof lower-level history or permission of instructor. Study of Europeancivilization during the “long” 19th century, from the FrenchRevolution to the eve of World War I. Impact of the IndustrialRevolution on European life, the growth of liberalism and socialism,and the emergence of modern mass society and consciousness.(Fall odd years)HIST 3364Twentieth Century Europe (3-0) Prerequisites: Six hours oflower-level history or permission of instructor. Study of Europefrom the outbreak of World War I to the present, emphasizingthe aftermath of World War I, the crises of the Depression years,World War II, the Cold War, and the post Cold War era.(Spring even years)HIST 3375Mexico (3-0) Prerequisites: Six hours of lower-level historyor permission of instructor. The history of Mexico from prehistorictimes to the present: political, economic, social, and intellectualdevelopment; United States-Mexican relations.(Fall odd years)HIST 3377Historiography and Methods (3-0) This course is an introductionto the discipline of history and a survey of researchmethodology as employed by historians. Unlike other undergraduatecourses in history, it is not a study of the past; instead,it is a study of the philosophy of history, investigative techniques,and the mechanics of historical research. This coursewill provide a research practicum during which students will beable to employ the material they are surveying as part of a project,the topic of which will be of their choice within the limits ofthe course. (Spring)HIST 432(a-z)Great Books and History (3-0) Prerequisites: Six hours oflower level history, or permission of instructor. History aspresented in the Great Books of the Western Canon. Closereadings of primary texts to illuminate problems related to thedevelopment of Western society and culture, and to stimulatecritical thinking. The content of each course will vary and thestudent may repeat course for credit when the topic differs. Thiscourse is designed for history majors and minors and as an upperdivision elective for interested students. (Fall)HIST 4330The American Frontier (3-0) Prerequisites: Six hours of lower-levelhistory or permission of instructor. An exploration ofthe unique pioneering spirit in American history with an examinationof the European and American experiences in settlingnew lands from 1540 to 1890. Emphasis on social and culturalhistory with special treatment of American expansionism, ManifestDestiny, and the frontier experience of women and NativeAmericans. (Fall even years)HIST 4345Special Topics in American History (3-0) Prerequisites: Sixhours of lower-level history or permission of instructor. Focuson a particular area of United States history, such as diplomatic,economic, local, or military history. Emphasis on appropriateresearch and specialized readings. May be repeated for creditwhen topics vary. (As needed)HIST 4354The U.S. in the Era Of World War (3-0) Prerequisites: Sixhours of lower-level history or permission of instructor. Study ofthe United States during the era of the World Wars (1914-1950)including America’s coming of age as a world power, politically,militarily, economically, and culturally. (Fall even years)HIST 4360Russia and the Soviet Union (3-0) Prerequisites: Six hoursof lower-level history or permission of instructor. Background to19th century. Tsarist Russia: autocracy, revolutionary intelligentsia.Economic, social developments. The Russian Revoltion.Lenin, Stalin, the 5-Year Plans. World War II, Cold War,de-Stalinization, and the demise of the Soviet system.(Fall even years)HIST 4365Modern Germany (3-0) Prerequisites: Six hours of lower-levelhistory or permission of instructor. Survey of the main elementsof German history in the 19th and the 20th centuries, from177